Why Ohio Renters Insurance is a must have

When you compare the amount of coverage offered on a renters insurance policy to the low price that it costs for renters insurance in Ohio, you would think that buying renters insurance is a no-brainer….. right?  But surprisingly, statistics show that’s not the case.  In fact, roughly 2/3 of renters have no renters insurance coverage whatsoever.


I want to share a couple scenarios with you to illustrate why it’s very important to have renters insurance:


Fire scenario:


Let’s suppose your apartment gets destroyed by a fire and all of your property gets destroyed.  That includes furniture, electronics, clothing, kitchen ware,  personal items and all other belongings…..

• Can you afford to replace all your stuff?

• Where are you going to stay while you’re finding another apartment?

• You’re probably going to have to eat out for at least a few days and probably more.  Eating out gets expensive.  Do you have the money to cover for that?

With renter’s insurance, all or most of that will be taken care of if you’re properly insured.  Personal property coverage will replace all of your property as long as you’ve selected enough coverage.  Loss of use coverage will also help you pay for lodging and food, which you are most likely going to need if you are displaced from your home.


How much personal property coverage can I get? 


  A good renter’s insurance policy will offer coverage as low as $10,000 and will offer up to $50,000.  The amount of loss of use coverage offered is based on the amount of personal property coverage that you select.  Loss of use coverage pays up to 20% of the amount of personal property coverage.  For example, if you selected $10,000 in personal property coverage, loss of use coverage will be offered up to $2000.  If you selected $20,000 in personal property coverage, loss of use coverage will be offered up to $4000, and so on and so on.


Two very important notes about personal property coverage:

• Replacement cost coverage versus ACV coverage: Not all renters insurance policies are the same. Some renters insurance policies only offer Actual Cash Value (ACV) coverage. But a good renters insurance policy will cover personal property on a replacement cost basis. I highly recommend having your property insured on a replacement cost basis. Yes, it will cost a few bucks more than actual cash value basis coverage. But it is more than well worth it because of the difference in amounts they pay for personal property. Replacement cost coverage does not factor in depreciation like actual cash value basis does. For example: let's say you bought a brand-new two years ago for $500. With replacement cost value coverage you would be reimbursed up to $500 (whatever it costs to buy a new tv of similar value), if your TV was destroyed in a fire. With actual cash value coverage, a two-year-old TV that once cost $500 brand new may only be worth $100 now! That's what actual cash value basis coverage would pay out. So obviously, those few bucks extra to pay for replacement cost value coverage is very well worth it!

• Be sure to take good inventory of all your personal property. I would recommend going through your apartment recording all of your property on video. That way if there is some sort of disaster, you've got a good record of the property that you own. And also, if you're having any trouble figuring out how much all your property is worth, there are plenty of free websites out there to help you with that. One popular site is knowyourstuff.org.

Scenario two: Injury to a visitor:


What would happen if somebody were to come visit your apartment and slip and fall, injuring them self? Renters insurance has two components of coverage that could be used if you were held liable:

• If this were just a minor injury that required an emergency room visit, a renters insurance policy offers what is called medical payments to others coverage. This will pay up to $2000 for injuries if someone gets injured at your home.

• If this were a major accident where someone is hurt more severely, renters insurance offers liability coverage. Liability coverage can be selected in the amounts of 25,000, 50,000 or $100,000 in coverage.

Additional optional coverage for Identity fraud:


Identity fraud is becoming more and more common. A good renters insurance policy will offer you the option to select for ID fraud expense coverage. This add-on coverage will help you with up to $2500 for covering your expenses trying to correct the situation.




Where should I look for renter’s insurance?


The first place you should start is with the company you have your auto insurance coverage with.  Some auto insurance companies also sell renter’s insurance and some don’t.  If your auto insurance company happens to be one of those companies that sells renter’s insurance, you might get a big discount by bundling them together with the same company.  And because auto insurance usually costs a lot more than renter’s insurance, the savings you get on your auto insurance policy by bundling can take out a huge chunk of your renter’s insurance premium.


If the bundling option doesn’t apply to you, then your next best bet is to get a quote from an independent agent.  That way, you can shop around for multiple renters insurance companies at once instead of shopping around one company that time.


Summary:


If you rent your home, I strongly suggest you take a look of renters insurance.  The amount of coverage you have available to end a long way in the event of a catastrophe.  And when you compare the coverage are getting to the very low cost of coverage, it becomes a no-brainer!



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